US wins back top clean energy spot

The USA has reclaimed its leading spot in a clean energy investment table from rival China.

The States pumped 42% more investment into new clean technology last year, according to the latest report from analysts Pew and Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF).

After slipping to second place in 2009 and third place the next year, the United States took back the top position in the poll of the G-20 clean energy race with $48.1 billion worth of clean energy investments in 2011.

Despite spending plenty of money on research, the States “lags” behind other nations when it comes to getting cleantech on the shelves, says the report, noting a “a persistent phenomenon in which the country fails to deploy into the marketplace the clean energy innovations it creates in the laboratory.”

cleantech savvy China, on the other hand, has adopted clean energy policies that encourage manufacturing and deployment. Although overall investment levels grew by only 1% to $45.5 billion, the report says China still leads the world in wind energy investment and deployment.

European top dog Germany took third place in the clean energy investment table.